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South Korean Prison To Feature Robot Guards

A South Korean prison will begin a month-long trial to see if robots make good prison guards. (Image Credit: Asian Forum For Corrections)

The BBC reports that a jail in Pohang, South Korea, will soon begin a one-month trial of three new robots, which will be there in a support capacity to monitor for “abnormal behavior.” The robots, which stand about five feet tall, were developed by the Asian Forum for Corrections. The robots are wheeled, and equipped with cameras and other sensors to monitor the inmates.

If the robot notices what it is programmed to understand as “risky behavior,” then they will immediately alert the guards. They’re not intended to actually engage with the prisoners, and as you can see by the picture, the design is aimed at making the prisoners as comfortable as possible with the robots.

What would be interesting, though, is if this turns out to be a successful trial, what happens then? Replace more guards with robots? I don’t think that’s a particularly good idea – prisons are dehumanizing enough as it is without decreasing human contact further. But if the costs come down, I can definitely see cash-strapped governments moving in that direction. Especially in privately-operated prisons on contract with various governments.

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I’m not sure how I feel about replacing guards with robots. I agree that it further dehumanizes the process, but in some ways, that could be a good thing for the inmates. The amount of guard-on-prisoner abuse/violence that goes on in prisons is astronomical. Robots are not capable of sadism, favoritism, looking the other way while an inmate is raped by a gang, etc etc etc. Removing the human element may very well be the best way to eliminate prisoner abuse and rape.